MLB News and Notes

By Justin Albers
Basketballss132002@yahoo.com
CLEVELAND- With the All-Star break now behind us, every Major League game means so much more. Here are some of the top stories from this week.
Bad News Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals received even more bad news on Thursday night when they found out that their pitching ace, Chris Carpenter, was going to have Tommy John surgery. This means that Carpenter, who has been on the DL since the second day of the season, will miss the rest of 2007 and part of ’08.
How awful could things get for St. Louis? After winning a World Series a year ago, everything has fallen apart. I give the Cardinals credit for hanging in there after they lost all five starting pitchers from last year, and have had to deal with top hitters like Jim Edmonds, Scott Rolen, and David Eckstein on the DL. If the Cardinals think they really have a chance to catch the Cubs and Brewers in the division, then they need to make a move for a starting pitcher right now. The trading deadline is in a little over a week, and they need all the help they can get.
Sabathia gets win No. 13
C.C. Sabathia had a fantastic first half of the season- nobody can debate that. But he has looked like a completely different pitcher in his last three starts. He has lacked command, given up several home runs, and has failed to work deep into the game. If the Indians have any hope of catching the Tigers in the AL Central, then they are going to need Sabathia on top of his game.
My personal opinion on the situation is that Sabathia is a little bit worried about his future. He loves playing in Cleveland, and wants to remain an Indian as long as possible. But he remains the only core guy not to be signed to a long term contract. Designated hitter Travis Hafner received a four year, $57 million last week, and manager Eric Wedge was resigned through 2010. I think Sabathia is worried that he is going to be offered more money by some other team and may have to leave Cleveland behind. That remains to be seen, but it is a possibility.

Barry Bonds hit home runs No. 752 and 753 on Thursday to pull him within two of Hank Aaron’s record. He is scheduled to play today and Sunday in Milwaukee.

The Boston Red Sox continue to struggle. Boston, who leads the AL East, has lost eight of its last 11 games, and holds just a seven game advantage over the Yankees.